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If my flat is my pension do I need to extend the lease?

I have a flat with 64 years left on the lease. I can't afford the lease extension which is likely to be over £10k and my mortgage company is unable to loan me the money.

My original plan was to use the flat's rental income as a pension once the mortgage is paid off (in 20 years time). Is it really necessary therefore, to extend the lease? Apart from difficulty selling the flat if I don't extend the lease are there any other disadvantages? Advice much appreciated :)

Comments

  • m0bov
    m0bov Posts: 2,752 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    For rental, no problem at all. But it will be pretty hard to sell should you need to release or raise cash.
  • Pixie5740
    Pixie5740 Posts: 14,515 Forumite
    10,000 Posts Eighth Anniversary Name Dropper Photogenic
    What happens when the lease runs out? Can the freeholder take the flat back? I'm genuinely curious as we don't have this freeholder/leaseholder thing in Scotland. When you buy a property you buy it, not a lease.
  • kinger101
    kinger101 Posts: 6,673 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    Have you shopped around for mortgages? Or seen a broker?
    "Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance" - Confucius
  • m0bov
    m0bov Posts: 2,752 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    U become a tenant of the freeholder, they take back the lease. The value is going to be very low. I had a 100 % retainer on the flat I was buying with a 72 year lease and that was being renewed as part of the sale!
  • ognum
    ognum Posts: 4,879 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Combo Breaker
    41Oscar wrote: »
    I have a flat with 64 years left on the lease. I can't afford the lease extension which is likely to be over £10k and my mortgage company is unable to loan me the money.

    My original plan was to use the flat's rental income as a pension once the mortgage is paid off (in 20 years time). Is it really necessary therefore, to extend the lease? Apart from difficulty selling the flat if I don't extend the lease are there any other disadvantages? Advice much appreciated :)

    You have an asset that is decreasing in value you need to extend the lease it will only get more expensive to do so.
  • Thank you very much to everyone who replied. I will continue to search for another broker. Wish we had the same system as Scotland without leases. They're a nightmare.
  • princeofpounds
    princeofpounds Posts: 10,396 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    You probably should extend the lease. Most mortgages will not be available to you with a short lease. If you need to refinance at any point then you will have limited options. This is only not an issue if you already have a low LTV very cheap tracker mortgage you are always going to be happy to stick with.

    Also, if you do need to sell (you may not want to be a landlord at age 90, or may have to sell to fund care) then you will be in a much worse position.

    Otherwise, it is an option to let it run down. But those are two fairly serious reasons.

    Remember as the lease gets shorter, the increase in costs accelerates.
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